Although it looks like an LCD, this display is actually a rear-projection screen with infrared touch technology.
(Credit: Wayne Cunningham/CNET)
LAS VEGAS--The LCD touchscreen has become commonplace in cars, but the technology suffers from limited shaping. Texas Instruments used its Digital Light Processor (DLP) technology to come up with a display that could take a wide variety of shapes in the car, and allow touch control for people wearing gloves.
In its exhibition area at CES 2013, Texas Instruments had a car dashboard mounted on a stand to show off the concept. A very large screen followed the curves of the dashboard down the center stack, capable of showing car functions such as navigation, phone, and audio. Just like any touchscreen, it showed virtual buttons which reacted when touched.
The curve of this screen was something that could not be replicated by an LCD. An LCD of this size would also be cost-prohibitive for most automakers. And it used a different kind of touch technology, infrared instead of capacitive, that made it possible to control while wearing gloves.
Instead of a glass sandwich, the touch area was actually a rear-projection screen. A Texas Instruments DLP processed the imagery and sent it through a projector. The screen itself had all the clarity of an LCD. An infrared sensor behind the screen registered finger touches, and a processor determined the tou... [Read more]
by Wayne Cunningham via CNET
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